Tulum Energy rediscovered a forgotten hydrogen tech and used it to raise $27M

It was a mistake that was before its time.

Between 202 and 20, the engineers of the Techont Group were trying to dial a new electronic arch furnace for steelmaker when they noticed something strange. The carbon electrodes were getting bigger than breaking down.

The team unknowingly made known as pyrolysis reaction, which is basically burning something in the absence of oxygen. In this case, the reactor was dividing the methane into pure hydrogen and pure carbon. The team had their discovery internally and then originally forgot about it.

“Nobody cared for then because no one cared for methane pyrolysis about hydrogen,” said Massimiliano Pierrei, CEO of Cotton Energy to TechCranch. The test was originally forgotten for the next 20 years.

However, a few years ago, the corporate VC Arm of the Techint Group, the investors of Techonargy Venture, were rotating the landscape for new ways to produce hydrogen from methane without general pollution.

Techint investors didn’t see much more. “Someone in the company realized, ‘But we already have it. We have this discovery,” “said Pierre.

So this concept has been washed away and sprinkled cotton to make the accidental discovery into an effective business. Recently, an overseas of $ 27 million, led by TDK Venture and CDP Venture Capital, has shut down the Round Rounds, the company exclusively informed TechCrunch. Dual Energy-Tech Ventures, Mito Tech Ventures and Techonargy Ventures participated.

Cotton does not just follow methane pyrolysis as a way to produce hydrogen. Modern hydrogen, molten art and Manolith are among the contestants of Tulam. The response has attracted attention to the efficiency of producing hydrogen from the cheap, widely available natural gas without any carbon dioxide emission. In pyrolysis, methane breaks down in the absence of oxygen, the only product is hydrogen gas and solid carbon dust, both can be sold.

However, the cotton is different in some ways. For one, there is no need to use expensive catalysts to encourage pyrolysis response, which some competitors need. In the use of electric arc reactors, cotton is a widely used – if changed – using technology.

“It gives you a big head,” said Pierre.

Cotton will use seed funds to create a pilot plant in Mexico as well as an existing techint group steel plant. If everything is fine, the steel plant can buy hydrogen and carbon directly from cotton for its use in its activities.

Pierre said that a commercial plant in full-scale production will produce two tonnes of hydrogen and 600 tonnes of carbon daily.

Cotton is hoping that its commercial scale plant will produce one kilogram of hydrogen in the United States for about $ 550, where both electricity and natural gas are cheap. At this price, it is More 50 cents more Today, most of the hydrogen made from natural gas, and it significantly reduces the top green hydrogen methods. It produces its process before selling any carbon in the company.

Almost not bad for forgetful mistakes.